Copșa Mică
| native_name_lang = | settlement_type = Town | image_skyline = Biserica evanghelica din Copsa Mica (18).JPG | image_alt = Lutheran church | image_caption = | image_flag = | flag_alt = | image_seal = | seal_alt = | image_shield = ROU SB Copsa Mica CoA.jpg | shield_alt = | image_map = Copsa Mica jud Sibiu.png | map_alt = | map_caption = Location of Copșa Mică in Sibiu County | pushpin_map = Romania | pushpin_label_position = | pushpin_map_alt = | pushpin_map_caption = Location of Copșa Mică in Romania | latd=46|latm=06|lats=45|latNS=N | longd=24|longm=13|longs=50|longEW=E | coordinates_display = | coordinates_region = RO | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = | subdivision_type1 = County | subdivision_name1 = | subdivision_type = Country | subdivision_name = | subdivision_type1 = County | subdivision_name1 = | established_title = First mentioned | established_date = 1402 | parts_type = Subordinated villages | parts_style = | parts = List | p1 = | p2 = | p3 = | p4 = | leader_title = Mayor | leader_name = Daniel Tudor Mihalache | leader_party = PNL | area_total_km2 = 25.90 | elevation_m = 284 | population_total = 5 404 | population_as_of = 2011 | population_density_km2 = 208.45 | timezone = EET | utc_offse = +2 | timezone_DST = EEST | utc_offset_DST = +3 | postal_code_type = Postal code | postal_code = 555400 | area_code_type = | area_code = | website = http://www.copsa-mica.ro/ }} , 1769-73.]] Copșa Mică ( ; ) is a town in Sibiu County, Transylvania, Romania, located north of Sibiu, 33 km east of Blaj, and 12 km southwest of Mediaș. The town's population of 5201 (as of 2011) is down significantly from its level in 1989, the year communism collapsed in Romania. At the 2011 census, 78.8% of inhabitants were Romanians, 11.9% Roma and 8.7% Hungarians. The town is best known for its status (in the 1990s) as one of the most polluted in Europe. This was due to the emissions of two factories in the area: * One, open from 1935 to 1993, produced carbon black for dyes; its emissions permeated the area for nearly sixty years, leaving soot on homes, trees, animals, and everything else in the area. The stain from these decades of deposits are still visible. * The other source of the pollution, less visible but with even more serious effects to the health of the town's residents, was Sometra, a smelter whose emissions have contributed to significantly higher incidence of lung disease and impotence, along with a life expectancy nine years below Romania's average. Politics The Copșa Mică City Council (Consiliul Local Copșa Mică), elected in the 2008 local government elections, is made up of 15 councillors, with the following party composition:http://www.copsa-mica.ro/index.php?id=432 References External links * Town's official website (in Romanian) * 1993 project funded by UNIDO to assist in the establishment of cleaner production practices at Sometra * Satellite photos of Copşa Mică in 1986 and 2004 * fragilecologies.com: The People and Pollution of Copsa Mica, Romania * Copsa Mica's Past and Future: Can Europe's Most Polluted Town Go Green? Category:Copșa Mică Category:Towns in Romania Category:Settlements in Sibiu County Category:Established in 1402 Category:Monotowns in Romania Category:Valid name- locality of Romania